Perovskia plant named &#39;Denim &#39;n Lace&#39;

ABSTRACT

The new and distinct cultivar of ornamental, hardy, Russian Sage plant,  Perovskia  ‘Denim &#39;n Lace’ with short, tight compact, upright habit of strong erect stems, long flowering season of large, densely-arranged, lavender-blue flowers on short branched stems. Foliage is silvery-green, highly-dissected, pinnately-compound with serrated margins and is retained well and keeps its color throughout the growing season.

Botanical classification: Perovskia atriplicifolia (Benth.).

Variety denomination: ‘Denim 'n Lace’.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct plant of Russiansage, botanically known as Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Denim 'n Lace’ andwill be referred to hereinafter also by its cultivar name ‘Denim 'nLace’ and the new plant. The new plant cultivar of Perovskia is a hardyherbaceous perennial grown for landscape use.

Perovskia ‘Denim 'n Lace’ is from the selection of seed from Perovskiaatriplicifolia ‘LISSLITT’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 20,845 collected by theinventor Kevin A. Hurd in the summer of 2010 at a nursery in Zeeland,Mich. All subsequent evaluations were performed in a full-sun trialgarden at the same nursery with loamy sand soil and irrigation andfertilizer as required. The single seedling plant was selected forfurther evaluation during the summer of 2012 and given the breederdesignation “K10-01-03.” The plant was propagated by stem cuttings atthe same nursery in Zeeland, Mich. and the original plant and thecuttings evaluated over the next two years until final approval forintroduction in the summer of 2014. The resultant asexually propagatedcuttings have been stable and identical to the original plant insuccessive asexual propagations.

No plants of Perovskia ‘Denim 'n Lace’ have been sold in this country,or anywhere in the world, prior to the filing of this application, norhas any disclosure of the new plant been made prior to the filing ofthis application with the exception of that which was disclosed withinone year of the filing of this application and was derived eitherdirectly or indirectly from the inventor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Perovskia atriplicifolia ‘Denim 'n Lace’ differs from its parent as wellas all other hardy Russian sage known to the inventor in a combinationof traits. The following characteristics in combination distinguish‘Denim 'n Lace’ from all other Perovskia plants known to the inventor:

-   -   1. Short, compact, tight and upright habit with erect strong        stems;    -   2. Long flowering season of large, densely-arranged,        lavender-blue flowers on short branched stems;    -   3. Silvery-green, highly-dissected, pinnately compound and        serrated foliage retained throughout growing season.

The nearest comparison plants are the parent plant Perovskia ‘LISSLITT’U.S. Plant Pat. No. 20,845, ‘Peek-a-Blue’ (not patented), and‘Rocketman’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 27,526. Compared to cultivar ‘LISSLITT’,Perovskia ‘Denim 'n Lace’ has a more upright tighter habit, and thefoliage is more dissected. Compared to ‘Peek-a-Blue’ the new plant hasdenser more upright branches and coarser leaf divisions and is lessprone for foliage to turn yellow and drop lower leaves. Compared to‘Rocketman’, Perovskia ‘Denim 'n Lace’ has a shorter habit with shorterbranching, more dissected foliage and earlier flowering. In comparisonto ‘Crazy Blue’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 25,639, the new plant has denser,more closely clustered flowers and denser habit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The photographs of the new plant demonstrate the overall appearance ofthe plant, including the unique traits. The colors are as accurate asreasonably possible with color reproductions. Ambient light spectrum,source and direction may cause the appearance of minor variation incolor. The plant used in the photograph is a three-year old plant grownin full sun field in loamy sand soil in trial gardens of a nursery inZeeland, Mich.

FIG. 1 shows a close-up of the flower stems of ‘Denim 'n Lace’ in thelandscape.

FIG. 2 shows a of the landscape habit of ‘Denim 'n Lace’.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The following is a detailed description of Perovskia atriplicifolia‘Denim 'n Lace’ as observed and compared to other cultivars for threeyears in trial gardens and production fields at a nursery in Zeeland,Mich. The following description is of a three-year old plant ofPerovskia atriplicifolia ‘Denim 'n Lace’ in a full-sun display garden inZeeland, Mich. with limited supplemental fertilizer and irrigation asneeded and without any pinching or plant growth regulators. The newplant has not been observed under all possible environments, and thephenotype may vary slightly with different environmental conditions,such as temperature, light, fertility, moisture and maturity levels, butwithout any change in the genotype. The color descriptions are inaccordance with the 2001 edition of the R.H.S. Colour Chart of The RoyalHorticultural Society, London, England, except where common dictionarycolor terms are used.

-   Plant habit: upright and dense shape; oppositely branched;    deciduous, semi-woody sub-shrub usually dying to the ground in most    Michigan winters and re-sprouting with new stems from the base each    spring; about 64 stems per plant.-   Plant size: about 85.0 cm in height, average stem height of about    80.0 cm, and about 85.0 cm in width about 40 cm above soil.-   Root description; fibrous; color nearest RHS 155D.-   Propagation: stem cuttings; root initiation occurs in about 14 days    at a temperature of 20° C.-   Growth rate: moderately vigorous.-   Crop time: about 12 to 14 weeks to produce flowering plant from    rooted plug.-   Stem description: quadangular; oppositely branched; young portions    lanulose; older stems becoming woody at base; average about 80.0 cm    long and about 7.0 mm across near base; about 36 branches per stem;    with herbal fragrance.-   Stem color: nearest RHS 191D.-   Internode length: average 2.7 cm.-   Internode color: same as surrounding stem.-   Branches; quadangular; opposite; lanulose; average about 50° angle    above horizontal; lower branches about 25.0 cm long and about 2.5 mm    diameter, decreasing distally to upper branches about 6.0 cm long    and about 1.0 mm diameter.-   Branch color: nearest RES 191D.-   Foliage description: opposite, broadly ovate, deeply palmately    cleft, acute apex and broadly acute base; serrate, farinose on    abaxial and puberulent on adaxial surface; about 8.0 cm long and    about 3.5 mm wide, shorter in distal region, average about 6.0 cm    long and about 2.0 cm wide; with herbal fragrance.-   Leaf color: adaxial nearest RHS 138A; abaxial between RHS 138A and    RHS 138B.-   Leaf venation: pinnate.-   Vein color: main adaxial vein between RHS 147D and RHS 148D; abaxial    main vein between RHS 147C and RHS 147D.-   Petiole: flattened abaxial to adaxial; slightly concavo-convex; to    about 18.0 mm long and about 2.0 mm across, average about 9.0 mm    long and about 1.7 mm across at stem.-   Petiole color: adaxial between RHS 147D and RHS 148D; abaxial    between RHS 147D and RHS 147C.-   Inflorescence: main stems vertical, branched verticillate panicle;    about 10.0 cm tall above last branch and about 2.5 cm across; total    inflorescence portion average about 60.0 cm tall and about 9.0 cm    wide.-   Flower buds about one day prior to opening: about 10.0 mm long and    about 2.0 mm wide; long ovoid; rounded apex; rounded base; calyx    abaxial with dense long pubescence about 1.0 mm long.-   Bud color: calyx hairs nearest RHS N82C; adaxial calyx nearest RHS    86A with veins of nearest RHS 187A, abaxial calyx between RHS 83C    and 83D with undertone of between RHS 146D and RHS 147C and veins of    nearest RHS 86A; extended unopened petal portion nearest RHS 96B.-   Flowers: bilabiate with upper and lower lip fused in about basal 6.5    mm; zygomorphic; about 14.0 mm long and about 6.0 mm across; face    opening to nearly flat; up to 15 flowers per verticil and over 600    per main stem; individual flowers open for about 4 days.-   Flower attitude: outward and slightly downward.-   Fragrance: slight herbal.-   Flowering season: beginning about mid-July in Michigan and remaining    effective for about eight weeks.-   Corolla: glabrous abaxial, puberulent in adaxial throat; bilabitate;    upper lip four-lobed, each with rounded apex and about 2.0 mm across    and about 2.0 mm long, together measuring about 6.0 mm across; lower    lip entire with obtuse apex; nearly flat, about 6.0 mm long and    about 4.0 mm wide at fusion point; base fused into tube; tube about    8.5 mm in length and about 2.5 mm in width.-   Corolla color: distal upper and lower lips adaxial nearest RHS N94A,    distal one half of fused lips nearest RHS 92C and proximal one half    of fused lips nearest RHS 92D; distal upper and lower abaxial    nearest RHS 94B with the distal one half of fused tube lighter than    RHS 94D and proximal one half of tube lighter than RHS 92D.-   Gynoecium: one pistil.    -   -   Style.—about 7.0 mm long and less than about 0.5 mm wide;            color of base white, lighter than RHS 155D and distal about            1.0 mm nearest RHS N77C.        -   Stigma.—splitting into two in the terminal 0.5 mm; color            nearest RHS 155B.-   Androecium: four, in two sets, two longer and fertile and two    shorter and sterile; stamens adnate to corolla.    -   -   Filaments (fertile pair).—exserted about 2.0 mm beyond lower            lip; about 8.0 mm in length and less than about 0.5 mm in            width; color nearest RHS 155D at base and gradually            developing to nearest RHS 83D toward apex.        -   Filaments (sterile pair).—fused to upper lip, about 3.0 mm            long and less than 0.5 mm diameter; color nearest RHS 155D            at base and nearest RHS 83D in about apical 0.5 mm.        -   Anther.—fertile pair elliptic; about 1.0 mm long and 0.5 mm            across, versatile; color nearest RHS N92B; sterile pair            flattened ovoid, about 0.5 mm long and about 0.3 mm            diameter; color nearest RHS 85C.        -   Pollen.—abundant on fertile anthers; color nearest RHS 11D.-   Calyx: tubular campanulate; about 6.0 mm long and about 2.5 mm    across; made up of five sepals fused at base in the proximal about    5.0 mm with apical about 1.0 mm separate; entire, apex acute;    outside densely pubescent and glandular, inside glabrous; persistent    for weeks after flower abscission and drop.-   Calyx color: abaxial color at flowering and after between RHS 83C    and RHS 83D with overtones of between RHS 146D and RHS 147C and    veins nearest RHS 86A and hairs between RHS 85B and RHS 85A; adaxial    color nearest RHS 147D with veins nearest RHS 187A.-   Seed: ovoid to spatulate in outline; about 2.0 mm long and about 1.0    mm diameter, color nearest RHS 200D. Hardiness to at least U.S.D.A.    zones 4 to 9; the new plant is very resistant to drought once    established and even tolerant of clay soils if good drainage is    provided.    -   -   Pest and disease resistance.—Russian sage is typically            resistant to deer and rodent browsing. The new plant is less            prone to yellowing foliage and lower leaf drop than other            known Russian sage cultivars. No other susceptibility or            resistance to diseases or pests has been observed except            that which is common to Perovskia.

I claim:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of hardy Russian sage plant,Perovskia ‘Denim 'n Lace’ as herein described and illustrated.